£1.3m bus scheme boost

DETAILED design work is set to start on the first phases of a £6million scheme to improve bus and cycling facilities in Huntingdon.

Cambridgeshire County Council's cabinet agreed yesterday (Tuesday) that a contraflow bus lane should be built on Huntingdon Ring Road between George Street and Huntingdon bus station and that people should have their say on the detailed proposals before building work could start.

The £1.3million scheme, which includes a cycle path, would cut bus journeys by 10 minutes at peak times as bus services would no longer have to go all the way around the town's busy ring road.

The cabinet also agreed work should start on providing a bus lane from Hinchingbrooke Park Road to Brampton Road. This and new cycle paths in the area, will help provide better transport choice for new developments due to be built in the area as well as existing premises such as the school and hospital, the county says.

A £300,000 scheme to build a bus lane and cycle link on the old disused Houghton Road will form the next phase of the project, though it could be brought forward if other elements of the project were delayed.

This would re-open the road to Huntingdon bound buses travelling from St Ives. The new bus lane would mean services could save time by avoiding queuing traffic at the nearby roundabout, especially at peak times.

Councillor John Reynolds, cabinet member for environment and community services, said: "If we are to encourage motorists to try public transport then we need to provide better facilities that make the bus a more attractive option. This scheme, which has received public backing, will help existing bus services as well as the proposed guided busway."

The proposals are part of a larger scheme to improve bus times and help reduce congestion in and around the Huntingdon area.

The moves follow public consultation in 2005 which supported the package of bus priority measures as well as new cycle and pedestrian paths.